The availability and types of cloud computing applications have increased exponentially in the past years. So too has the availability and accessibility of mobile computing, particularly tablet computers, smart phones and other devices. More and more devices and applications are made available each day that use and consume network resources and data. In many instances, it is useful to know how exactly users are interacting with hosted software applications, but this is difficult to determine because a DNS often only provides part of the data to provide for meaningful comparison and tracking.
Furthermore, it is often impossible to determine which specific user is interacting with a hosted software application and how this interaction is proceeding. Often, a user will connect to a network via various routers, hubs, switches and the like. Ultimately, the host software does not know the private IP address of the actual computer because this information is masked as the data traffic proceeds through the various routers/switches etc. For example, the hosted application may know that a particular router is contacting it based on the router's IP address, but the hosted application would not know which computer connected to that router is associated with the contact. Thus, the public IP address (of the router) would be known, but the private IP address of the actual computer on the local network would not be known.
Furthermore, many local networks are setup using similar networking technology and it is therefore possible that multiple users may have the same private IP address but they would be logging on via different networks or domains. This adds further complexity to the issue of accurately tracking.
On the user level, this means that correlation of the particular computer and the user login session is difficult if not impossible to accomplish given the complex networking technology normally employed. This is especially so in large organizations that have many computing devices connected to their networks and firewalls; encryption and other security measures may further mask the information needed to correlate individual users to the DNS and activity data.
Furthermore, mobile devices may frequently change their IP addresses on networks such that knowing the private IP address when the user begins the session may not provide sufficient visibility to the entire session with the hosted application. This is particularly an issue when the device changes networks or when the device is communicating with a different hub/router within the network. For example, if the device is on one end of a building, a first WiFi network extender/bridge may allow the device to connect whereas when that device is moved to a different area of the building, a different extender/bridge may allow such connection, but with a different private IP address.